Karachi police failed to heed early warnings of attacks

Salman Hussain says the killings could be avoided if the police were better prepared

Despite an early warning by the Punjab police to the Sindh police and its affiliate intelligence agencies about the presence of over 200 wanted terrorists of the two Deobandi sectarian parties - Lashkar-e-Jhangvi and Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan - Sindh police failed to preempt the recent killings in Karachi, TFT was informed by a senior police officer in Karachi.

"The tip off also involved information on Riaz Basra, the LJ chief, who was thought to be hiding in Karachi," said this police officer.

Riaz Basra is the most wanted sectarian terrorist and was first caught by Lahore police following the murder of Iranian diplomat Sadiq Ganji. He managed to escape while on trial and has since remained at large. Intelligence sources now say he operates from Afghanistan where he runs a training camp.

However, the Punjab police's report was not taken seriously since Sindh police was busy dealing with the movement launched by the Grand Opposition Alliance (GDA). "The police was also concentrating more on suspected terrorists of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM)," says an intelligence official. The slackness on the part of the authorities ultimately cost precious lives on October 1, 1999, when sectarian terrorists struck, killing 13 people in a brief span of 14 hours.

Ironically, exactly 11 years back on October 1 1988, over 100 people were killed in Karachi. The reprisal attacks were apparently in retaliation to the Hyderabad massacre on September 30 1988 which claimed 200 lives.

According to the statement given to the police by the son of a deceased person on October 1 1999, two bearded men entered the imambargah in Al-falah situated in Malir in Karachi's east district just as people began the "fajr" (morning) prayers. The two men were armed with assault rifles and with a shout of "Allaho Akbar" opened fire at the "nimazis". Within a minute they had killed nine people and wounded another eight. The just walked away and left in a car which was parked outside. "The killers were in their mid-twenties," this eyewitness told the police.

Identical incidents of sectarian killings happened in Karachi in 1997 when 28 people were killed in two separate incidents at a religious gathering in PECHS Society and at Masjid Siddiqu-e-Akbar in Malir. While in PECHS the victims were Shias, the reprisal attack on the mosque in Malir killed Sunnis.

Police sources say these incidents normally happen during "fajr" prayers because it is easy for the killers in the early hours of the morning to strike and then make good their escape. "That is the time when only 'nimazis' are up, there is generally no traffic on the roads and even police patrolling, more intensive at night, slackens because that is the time to change shifts. Fajr, therefore, is an ideal time to strike," says an investigating officer.

Sources say despite reports of killings in the Punjab since September 28, the ambush in Dera Ismail Khan, which claimed the lives of a senior TJP leader, Dr. Khurshid Anwar, his daughter Umme Laila and his gunman, no precautionary measures were taken by the police in Karachi. Even after the Al-falah massacre in the morning, police was not deployed at the Sunni madrassah where four people were gunned down later in the day. This time the victims were Sunnis.

Interestingly, in 1997 the province established the so-called Elite Force specifically to fight terrorism. This force is now generally used, at a huge expense, on security duties for the VVIP. This was also the case on September 30. In fact, it is now common practice to use the Elite Force only during the visits to the province of the president and the prime minister.

Ironically, the police were also warned by the Intelligence Bureau after the spate of killings began in Punjab and the NWFP (two top leaders of Tehreek-e-Jaferia Pakistan (TJP) were killed in Dera Ismail Khan and Gujranwala on September 28 and 30 respectively) that imambargahs and mosques run by the TJP and the SSP in Karachi could be hit. The Karachi police still did not preempt the possibility of such attacks.

"These are routine reports after killings begin but they are important nevertheless in forewarning police in other areas. However, in this case no measures were taken to protect mosques and imambargahs. In fact, it is ironic that the Malir SHO was not even aware of the venue of killings after the terrorists had struck at Al-filah," a source told TFT.

Interestingly, the police's dismal performance in tackling real crime has come on the heels of its "success" in handling opposition rallies on September 11 and 25. The de facto chief minister Ghous Ali Shah and the IG police, Sindh, had claimed in a press conference that police had successfully put down terrorism in the province. The attacks belie that claim.

"The terrorists have once again proved that they can strike where and whenever they like and get away with it. Chances are the police will pick up a few people in the coming days and get their confessional statement but we know how these statements work," said a source adding: "Statistics show that nearly 6,000 people have been killed in the city in less than two decades but not even a dozen culprits have gone to the gallows."

Although Punjab is still the base for sectarian strife and generally, those who were arrested in the past are either from the Punjab or from the NWFP, Karachi remains a "haven" for terrorists.

TFT visited different areas of the city on October 1, soon after the Malir massacre which took place at about 5.45 a.m. The city has some very marked areas dominated by sectarian groups such as the SSP, the TJP and the Sunni Tehreek. For instance TJP dominates areas like Ancholi, Rizvia in District Central, Kharadar or Garden in District South, areas adjacent to Mehfil-e-Shah Khorasan, Jaffar-e-Tayyar Society, parts of Malir and parts of Landhi-Korangi in District East and Malir. Similarly, mosques and madressah controlled by different Sunni organisations can be found in Nagan chowrangi, Lasbelia, New town, Kharadar, Pargani, Sohrab Goth etc. No police deployment was visible in these areas.

However, a spokesperson of Karachi police denied the police was not prepared or had not taken adequate precautions following warnings of likely attacks. "This fact can be corroborated from the daily situation report. Contingents were deployed at all the likely places but it is simply impossible for the police to cover all the areas. The imambargah that was attacked has never figured before as a likely target. It is a very small place situated deep inside Malir," said the spokesperson.

The spokesperson also mentioned that following reports of attacks in Punjab and the NWFP, Haji Haneef Tayyab, a member of the provincial advisory council, held meetings with ulema from both the sides. Haji Tayyab told the police that ulema were agreed that this was the work of some external agents and insisted the police should not arrest people since that would merely contribute to psyching up their activists. "This fact can also be corroborated," said the spokesperson, adding: "We have some clue that this is not the job of sectarian activists but hired killers who want to destabilise Sindh."

Sources also say one of the reasons for this fresh round of terrorism could be to influence the witnesses who are appearing in the courts in cases against suspected terrorists. "These groups adopt such tactic to harass witnesses especially when cases against their companions reach advance stages," said one police officer.

The sectarian killings can cause more problems for the opposition parties particularly Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) whose greatest contribution to the city has been the elimination of sectarian killings. The opposition's movement, which had started to gain momentum, could also be affected as attention diverts to the wave of sectarian killings.